Annual inflation in the euro area was 2.0 percent in February this year, up from 1.8 percent in January, according to a report released by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities. In February last year, the annual inflation rate was -0.2 percent.
Meanwhile, in the European Union (EU-28) annual inflation was 1.9 percent in February, up from 1.7 percent in January. In February 2016, the annual inflation rate in the EU-28 was -0.1 percent.
The lowest inflation rates were observed in Ireland (0.3%), Romania (0.5%), and Bulgaria and Denmark (both 0.9%), whereas the highest annual rates were recorded in Estonia (3.4%), Belgium (3.3%), and Latvia and Lithunia (both 3.2%). Compared with January, annual inflation fell in three member states and rose in twenty-four.